Factory-produced bread products (loaves) are, in general, packaged individually in packaging bags for delivery.
Examples of the bread bagging technique are disclosed in for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,671,048, No. 5,743,071 and No. 6,421,984.
These patents disclose bagging apparatuses, respectively. These apparatuses each have an upper scoop and a lower scoop movable forward and backward together in a horizontal direction. The upper scoop and the lower scoop are advanced and inserted into a bag through an opening thereof, and the upper scoop is displaced upward relative to the lower scoop, thereby expanding the bag vertically. In addition, the upper and lower scoops are retracted to pull the expanded bag in the direction of retraction of the upper and lower scoops, thereby allowing a loaf of bread placed in the path of retraction of the lower scoop to enter the bag through the opening.
The upper scoop needs to be moved forward and backward together with the lower scoop and to move vertically relative to the lower scoop. Therefore, a drive unit for vertically moving the upper scoop is installed on a carrier that moves forward and backward together with the upper and lower scoops supported thereon.
Consequently, the parts of the bagging apparatus that are moved forward and backward, including the upper and lower scoops, the drive unit and the carrier, are considerably heavy in weight. Therefore, if these heavy parts of the apparatus are moved forward and backward at high speed, large impacts always occur at the forward and backward ends of the movement. Accordingly, failures are likely to occur in the bagging apparatus, particularly in the power cable, air hose and so forth of the drive unit for the upper scoop.